An embodiment of a remote control device of the kind set forth is known from WO2006/111927, assigned to the same applicant. That document discloses a control method of an advanced lighting system. The system comprises at least one lighting arrangement, such as luminaries, downlight, uplight, wallflushers, etc. The lighting arrangements emit modulated light, comprising identification codes identifying the lighting arrangement. The system furthermore comprises a remote control device suitable to receive the light from the lighting arrangements and derive the identification codes there from. The derived codes enable the control device to determine which lighting arrangements contribute to the illumination at the position of the device, as well as to locate its position relative to the lighting arrangements from which it receives light. Moreover, the control device may derive additional data from the light received, such as colour point, light intensity, etc. Subsequently, the user control device may transmit the codes, location, and—in general—lighting related data (including user defined commands) to a master controller of the lighting system. Receiving the data from the user control device enables the master control to control the lighting arrangements in the system in accordance with the received data (i.e. adjustment of the lighting conditions such as for instance a change in colour point, light intensity, beam shape, etc).,
The advantage of this approach lies in the fact that it allows the user an intuitive control of the lighting effects creatable with the system. This becomes especially comfortable for a lighting system comprising many tens or hundreds of luminaries.
However, a drawback of the solution described in WO2006/111927 is that all lighting arrangements need to transmit identification codes at all times, in order to make them visible to the remote control device. It will be readily appreciated that luminaries turned ‘off’ do not emit light and hence no identification codes can be detected. Of course the lighting arrangements may be ‘on’ at high dimming levels, i.e. at low light intensity levels. Still, even at such dimmed levels, WO2006/111927 discloses an energy inefficient method and system. Continuous modulation of the light (at high frequencies, typically megahertz) to incorporate the identification codes forms a further drawback, as it contributes to electromagnetic emissions and EMC issues. In addition, appreciating that certain desired lighting effects prescribe one or more luminaries to be turned ‘off’, the necessity to have these luminaries emit light (even at low intensities) contributes to undesired light distributions.